Power chartering in the British Virgin Islands is a small and growing part of a sailing market, and it changes the week rather than shortening it. The distances are already short, so speed buys you time at anchor rather than more islands. What it costs you is fuel, and in a cruising ground where a sailing boat burns almost none, that is the whole difference.
What the fleet publishes
Horizon Yacht Charters prices its BVI fleet by the day from Nanny Cay Marina on Tortola: a Lagoon 51 of 2025 with six cabins and thirteen berths at 2,599 USD a day, and a Lagoon 51 owner's version of 2024 with four cabins at 2,299. Those are sailing catamarans priced daily rather than weekly, which is unusual here and makes a short charter easy to cost.
Where the power market sits
Between a bareboat sailing catamaran, which Conch Charters publishes from 6,999 USD a week, and the crewed market above it. A power catamaran of similar size costs more to charter and considerably more to run, and the fleets carry far fewer of them. If the reason for wanting power is comfort at anchor rather than speed, a sailing catamaran delivers most of it for less.
Fuel, which is the real line
A sailing catamaran in the BVI burns a tank or two over a week, mostly manoeuvring and charging. A power catamaran covering the same forty to fifty nautical miles at cruising speed burns a multiple of that, and fuel in the islands is dearer than on the mainland. Get the consumption figure for the specific boat at its cruising speed before you compare a power quote with a sailing one.
When power is the right answer
A group who do not sail and do not want a skipper, a week with limited mobility aboard, or a charter of three or four days where the time saved on passages is a real fraction of the trip. For a standard seven day BVI loop with anyone aboard who can sail, the case is weak: the sailing is gentle, short and the best part of the day.
Questions people ask about power yacht charter bvi
How much is a power yacht charter in the BVI?
Horizon Yacht Charters prices its BVI catamarans by the day at 2,599 USD for a six cabin Lagoon 51 and 2,299 for a four cabin, read on 11 September 2026.
Is a power catamaran worth it in the BVI?
Rarely, unless nobody aboard sails or the charter is only three or four days. The distances are short and the sailing is the gentlest part of the day.
How much fuel does a BVI power charter use?
A multiple of a sailing catamaran's, which burns a tank or two in a week. Ask for the consumption at cruising speed before comparing a power quote with a sailing one.